Apple adopting RCS doesn’t mean the end of green bubbles – but it will improve chatting with friends who own Android phones
Apple has decided to embrace Rich Communications Services (RCS), which marks a significant shift in the messaging landscape. Already supported by major Android players (including Samsung and Google), RCS will come to a 2024 iPhone software update.
In a statement to 9to5Mac, Apple said:
Later next year, we will be adding support for RCS Universal Profile, the standard as currently published by the GSM Association. We believe RCS Universal Profile will offer a better interoperability experience when compared to SMS or MMS. This will work alongside iMessage, which will continue to be the best and most secure messaging experience for Apple users.
So messaging on iPhone will soon change forever. But to what degree – and why? Let’s find out.
Why has this happened?
During a 2022 Q&A session at the Recode conference, Apple dismissed RCS support. Tim Cook told one attendee “buy your mom an iPhone” when he said he’d like to be able to better share video clips with her.
Apple’s change of heart is unlikely because the company’s board remembered that exchange and felt bad for the attendee’s mom. Instead, it’s likely because Apple finds itself under increased regulatory scrutiny, especially in the EU.
The company is keen to avoid being labeled a ‘gatekeeper’ for key services. If it can show support for open standards, that casts it in a better light for the battles ahead over the likes of app stores and sideloading.
What will RCS support mean?
RCS will be a part of Messages.
RCS won’t replace the iMessage service – the two will co-exist in the Messages app. Apple will continue to default to iMessage if the recipient has a compatible device, and then fall back, respectively, to RCS and SMS/MMS.
Nonetheless, RCS will be a substantial upgrade to the first-party messaging experience between iPhone and Android. Support on iPhone will bring improved interoperability for high-quality media, read receipts, live typing indicators, and location sharing.
Despite these advancements, limitations persist. Notably, the RCS spec lacks end-to-end encryption and Apple is unwilling to support proprietary bolt-ons from the likes of Google. While Apple does say it will work with other parties to improve RCS itself, the timescale for doing so is unclear. That means green bubbles will endure, because Apple argues blue iMessage ones denote the most secure way to message people from its devices.
So this doesn’t mean iMessage for Android, then?
Beeper Mini current status: having a fight with Apple.
Unfortunately not. Only an official Apple Messages app, or opening iMessage up to third parties, could make that happen – which is vanishingly unlikely, because there’s no benefit to Apple. The company would end up with increased overhead for no financial reward. In fact, opening up iMessage may even reduce Apple’s revenue, if enough iPhone owners moved to Android, because Messages was no longer keeping them on Apple’s platform.
Other companies have tried to fill the void on Android, but they’ve all faced significant challenges. Recently, Nothing Chats lasted under 24 hours before it was pulled for being a security disaster. Beeper Mini fared better after reverse-engineering iMessage, and at the time of writing is engaged in a cat-and-mouse game with Apple, with the latter repeatedly attempting to block access. That’s not ideal if what you want is a reliable way to message your friends on iPhone, as if you were using an iPhone yourself.
App to the future
So green bubbles are here to stay – and attitudes towards that vary globally. In the US, it’s a big deal due to the popularity of Messages and the occasional stigmatization of Android users and green bubbles. But in Europe, WhatsApp dominates and people think nothing more of swapping between a few messaging apps to chat with certain people than they would switching streaming media players to watch certain shows.
Still, it at least looks like 2024 will better bridge the gap between iPhone and Android messaging and improve the experience for millions of people. Progress is progress, even if RCS on iPhone won’t be quite as much progress as some people would like.